TOKYO (Reuters): Japan on Monday began vaccinations against COVID-19 for its sizable elderly, with imported doses still low and the pace unlikely to stop a fourth wave of infection.
Shooting for people 65 and older began in about 120 locations across the country, using the Pfizer Inc. vaccine manufactured in Europe and distributed to regions last week.
Only 2,810 people in Tokyo are expected to get a shot from the first batch, while most regions will receive 1,000 doses or less, according to a health ministry schedule. Japan has a rapidly aging population of 126 million.
During a tour of a vaccination center in Hachioji, west of Tokyo, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said he hoped to secure about 100 million doses of vaccine by the end of June, more than enough to give the population two doses. large of 36 million.
“We would like to deliver (the vaccines) to as many people as soon as possible,” Suga said.
On Monday, Tokyo began a period of near-urgent measures for a month to quell a fourth wave of contagion caused by virulent mutant strains and with the scheduled start of the Summer Olympics just over 100 days away.
According to Haruka Sakamoto, a doctor and researcher at Keio University in Tokyo.
“The vaccination currently available cannot prevent the fourth wave of the pandemic,” he said. “I think the younger generation will now be more affected compared to previous waves.”
Japan was among the last major economies to start COVID-19 inoculations when it began in mid-February, following national trials to ensure safety. Japan is dependent on the Pfizer vaccine, as it is the only COVID-19 trait approved by national regulators.
About 1.1 million people in Japan, mostly front-line health workers, have received at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine two-shot regimen.
Taro Kono, the minister in charge of vaccines, has defended the pace and said local governments wanted time to prepare.
“After tomorrow, we will inform the prefectures how much we can distribute and decide how much to allocate to each municipality,” Kono told NHK on Sunday.
Rocky Swift report in Tokyo; Additional Ju-min Park Reports; Edited by Karishma Singh and Michael Perry